GIGABYTE Z97X-Gaming 7 Review

In our first phase of Intel Z97 reviews we looked at GIGABYTE’s high-end gaming motherboard, Z97X-Gaming G1. While this motherboard may be a superb offering, some gamers (and enthusiasts) will regard such a motherboard as overkill. It’s wealth of features also places it in the upper bracket for pricing but today we’ve been looking at something very similar but with a smaller price-tag.

There is little to differentiate the visual appearance of GIGABYTE’s G1 product line and this close resemblance ensures consistency throughout the varying models. We have to say, the black and red theme is very appealing to the eye. The general layout and use of components across our Gaming 7 are also very good, we’re left in no doubt that this particular offering projects itself forward as a resilient counterpart.

Dotted around the motherboard are a selection of useful features including versatile storage options from the two new interfaces – SATA Express and M.2. Having these two new standards as an additional to the conventional SATA III (6G) ports future proofs Gaming 7 and leaves the door open to other possibilities later on down the road.

In all our testing, Gaming 7 demonstrated consistent performance in a range of scenarios and even managed to attain the 4.6GHz milestone which our Intel Core i7-4770K cannot go beyond. This highlights that in the overclocking department Gaming 7 is well-equipped. But as we discovered with the Gaming G1 counterpart, the BIOS hasn’t really had much of a facelift from the previous generation and the interface, compared to other vendors, feels dated is far from fluid.

The pricing for Gaming 7 is a particular highlight. It sits at just shy of £140 GBP / $179 USD – making it a sensible choice for those with tighter budget constraints.

Gaming 7 retains the high-end features expected from the G1 line. In all our testing we found this motherboard to be a consistent performer and we therefore regard Gaming 7 a smart choice for gamers and enthusiasts who are looking for an inexpensive path to Intel Z97.